Guru Murthy and Mahesh Sosle
Dalit Students Federation, University of Mysore
The progressive thinkers, cultural personalities and social activists gave a new dimension to the history of Mysuru by celebrating ‘Mahisha Dasara’ on September 29, 2016 organised by Dalit Welfare Trust in association with Backward Class Association, Mysore University Dalit Students and Research scholar Federation in Mysuru city. Thousands of intellectuals, social organizers, researchers, students, workers and other indigenous sections of Karnataka state assembled before the statue of Mahisha to celebrate ‘Mahisha Dasara’ and recall the yeoman contributions made by Mahisha, the great Buddhist king for the inclusive development of people regardless of religion, caste, color and creed.
“Mahisha was a great Buddhist monk, secular ruler and destiny maker of the marginalized indigenous people of Mysuru region. Mahisha and his people were the angel guardians of state but the Brahminical forces have termed Mahisha as a demon with a view to bury the real history and betray the Buddhist and Dravidians who built the ‘Mahisha Mandala’. The progressive thinkers should rewrite the history of indigenous people and reestablish their social and political supremacy in modern India”, observed Prof. K.S. Bhagavan, a well known thinker and writer of Karnataka.
“Mahisha was not actually killed by Goddess Chamundeswari but a myth was created among the people by vested interests to twist the history. Mahisha is not a demon, he belongs to Naga community who are Buddhists in India. The Nagas had existed, cultivated Indian civilization and built a rich legacy much before the vedic and Brahminical forces. The people of India should recall the historical legacy of Mahisha who was a great humanist” noted Prof. Aravinda Malagatti, a rebel writer in the region.
Former Chairman of Karnataka State Backward Classes Commission and eminent jurist Dr. C. S. Dwarakanath released the book entitled ‘Ancient Asura Rashtra’ authored by progressive writer Mr.Siddaswamy. “In the history of India written by Aryans, Asuras are portrayed as demons even though they were great protectors of Indian culture and civilization. Asuras are the indigenous people of India who sacrificed their lives for the liberation of the country and produced national wealth by their sheer patriotism and hard work” remarked Dr.C.S.Dwarakanath.
Prof. B.P. Mahesh Chandra Guru, media scholar and social rationalist spoke about the legacy of Mahisha on the eve of Mahisha Dasara. “The history of India is the history of conflict of interest between Brahminism and Buddhism as was rightly observed by Baba Saheb Ambedkar. The Aryans came from abroad and invaded the Dravidians of India by using their manipulative tactics. The Aryans who claim merit are the most responsible persons for the backwardness of India. The champions of merit are fake Indians but the Dravidians are the real meritorious people who built rich legacy for India under the great vision and leadership of Buddha and Ambedkar. The history of India should be rewritten and the power equations between Aryans and Dravidians should be changed to make India a true progressive and welfare state” called upon Prof. Guru.
Mr.Dileep Narasaiah. M, Media Researcher delivered the introductory speech and emphasized the need for religious conversion of Dalits from Hinduism to Buddhism to prevent all kinds of atrocities and empower the marginalized sections according to the principals of Ambedkar and other champions of social justice. He noted that in future every year Mahisha Dasara will be celebrated by Dalits, backwards and minorities who are the makers of Indian history. The programme was very successful due to the active presence and participation of Mr. Shantaraju, Honorary President Dalit Welfare Trust, Prof. T.M. Mahesh, President Dalit Welfare Trust, Mr. K.S. Shivaram, Convenor of Karnataka State Backward Class Federation, Mr.Purushotam, former Mayor of Mysuru city, Prof. Chikkarangegowda, Historian and writer, Prof. Mayigowda, writer, Mr. M.K. Somashekar, MLA of Krishnarajapuram constituency, Mr. Gurumurthy, Convenor, Mysore University Dalit Students Federation, Mr. Mahesh Sosale, Honorary Convenor, Mysore University Dalit Students Federation, Mr. Amjad Khan, Leader of Social Democratic Party of India, Mr. Siddaraju, Leader of Bahujan Samaj Party, Prajwal Shashi, Buddha and Ambedkar association, Nanjanagud, Shekar Buddha, Srinivasa D Managalli, Research Scholar, AJ, Khan, Dalit- Minorities Sangh, Gulbarga and other social organizers.
A resolution was passed in the convention to build a suitable memorial to Mahisha and cherish his ideals and contributions. It was also resolved to organize Mahisha Dasara in a grand scale in association with all progressive organizations on par with Mysuru Dasara. A national seminar will also be organized to discuss and document the historical contributions of Mahisha, a great Buddhist king of South India. The organizers warned the anti-social justice forces that they would retaliate in a befitting way if they dared to touch the statue of Mahisha in Mahabaleswara Hill of Mysuru city.
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